Preview — Buffett
by Roger Lowenstein

Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist

Starting from scratch, simply by picking stocks and companies for investment, Warren Buffett amassed one of the epochal fortunes of the 20th century -- an astounding net worth of $10 billion and counting. That awesome record has made him a cult figure.

This illuminating biography reveals a man whose conscientiousness, integrity, and good humor exist alongside an odd emotiStarting from scratch, simply by picking stocks and companies for investment, Warren Buffett amassed one of the epochal fortunes of the 20th century -- an astounding net worth of $10 billion and counting. That awesome record has made him a cult figure.

This illuminating biography reveals a man whose conscientiousness, integrity, and good humor exist alongside an odd emotional isolation. Buffett also masterfully traces his life: his enormously successful partnership; his early, inspired investments in American Express and Geico; his companionship and investment with Katharine Graham of the Washington Post; his role in the Capital Cities purchase of ABC; his unique relationship with his wife and mistress; and his rescue of the scandal-ridden Salomon Brothers....more

Community Reviews

I recently re-read this Buffett biography (first published in 1995 and now re-issued with a new Afterword, dated January 2008) and then read Alice Schroeder's The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life. Both are first-rate. Which to select if reading only one? That depends on how much you wish to know about Buffett's personal life, including his relations with various family members, and how curious you are about his personal hang-ups, peculiarities, eccentricities, fetishes, etc. IfI recently re-read this Buffett biography (first published in 1995 and now re-issued with a new Afterword, dated January 2008) and then read Alice Schroeder's The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life. Both are first-rate. Which to select if reading only one? That depends on how much you wish to know about Buffett's personal life, including his relations with various family members, and how curious you are about his personal hang-ups, peculiarities, eccentricities, fetishes, etc. If you can do without any of that, Roger Lowenstein's biography is the one to read. I also highly recommend the recently published Second Edition of The Essays of Warren Buffet: Lessons for Corporate America, with content selected, arranged, and introduced by Lawrence Cunningham.

As does Schroeder but in somewhat greater detail, Lowenstein rigorously examines subjects that include:

1. The development of Buffett's business philosophy 2. His most important business relationships over the years 3. His most important personal relationships over the years 4. His non-negotiable values 5. What Berkshire Hathaway accomplished under his leadership as CEO 6. Buffett's insecurities 7. His views on philanthropy 8. His social awareness 9. His relationship with Melinda and Bill Gates 10. Why no one else has achieved comparable results by following Buffett's advice

Warren Buffett is among the most effective CEOs in recent business history (at least since the conclusion of World War II) and there is certainly a great deal of value to be learned from his performance as both a leader and a manager. Although a business icon, he is also an exceptionally human being because of a unique combination of insecurities, hang-ups, fetishes, neuroses, etc. that various loved ones (notably wife Susie, daughter Susie, and companion Astrid) were able to manage with exquisite sensitivity. Like so many others, he cares more and more deeply than he is (generally) able to express. That said, one close associate and dear friend, Bill Ruane, suggested to Lowenstein after his book was published, "I'm not sure if you captured how [begin italics] tough [end italics] Warren is." Perhaps no one can but credit Roger Lowenstein with providing in this volume a thorough, balanced, multi-dimensional , and insightful explanation of how an ordinary man in almost every other respect accomplished greater success in business than almost anyone else ever has...or ever will....more

Everyone is interested in a billionaire! How he did it? Where did his ideas come from? Was he worthy of it? One ends up forming an opinion on such people very easily. Warren Buffet, unlike the Gates and the Jobs of the world, is however not that public a figure. His intelligence does not necessarily impact the common man's life so openly, and so frequently as it does for a few others. But having said that, reading about him has made me realise that not knowing about Buffet's ideologies, his ecceEveryone is interested in a billionaire! How he did it? Where did his ideas come from? Was he worthy of it? One ends up forming an opinion on such people very easily. Warren Buffet, unlike the Gates and the Jobs of the world, is however not that public a figure. His intelligence does not necessarily impact the common man's life so openly, and so frequently as it does for a few others. But having said that, reading about him has made me realise that not knowing about Buffet's ideologies, his eccentricities and his idiosyncracies, apart from the his genius in doing what he does with such clarity of mind, is like knowing everything about Da Vinci but for his Mona Lisa masterpiece. Roger Lowenstein, in a brilliant manner, brings out the smartness that lay behind this young Omaha kid called Warren Buffet that eventually made him the second richest man in the world. Lowenstein, make note, has written this brilliant book without any interaction with Buffet himself who "would not collaborate in any way, nether attempt to interfere with the project". But maybe this handicap is what allows Lowenstein to dig deeper behind the rationales of Buffet's stock purchases, to understand his thought process and to portray to the reader the rise of the 'oracle of Omaha' across the decades in a backdrop of a volatile stock market wherein new theories came and went in a flash, that sticking to your belifs required courage and determination. Buffet has that in aplomb! A must read book (you will enjoy it more if you have ever traded in stocks yourselves) about a genius who comes probably just once a century... ...more

An excellent book. I almost didn't read it as I've read a few Buffet books and usually find them quite tedious. Not this one! I loved Lowenstein's perspective as a long-time investor of Buffet's and a well regarded value investor/author himself. The result is an intimate but outside look at what made Buffet into the investor and man he is today.

Buffet is a mess of seeming contradictions, his obsession with accumulating money yet his refusal to spend any of it, his remarkable self confidence yetAn excellent book. I almost didn't read it as I've read a few Buffet books and usually find them quite tedious. Not this one! I loved Lowenstein's perspective as a long-time investor of Buffet's and a well regarded value investor/author himself. The result is an intimate but outside look at what made Buffet into the investor and man he is today.

Buffet is a mess of seeming contradictions, his obsession with accumulating money yet his refusal to spend any of it, his remarkable self confidence yet his apparent shyness, his analytical approach yet his refusal to use a computer or even a calculator to analyze investments ("if I don't understand the number in my head, then I won't understand it from a computer!"), his outspoken criticisms of modern CEO behavior yet his numerous CEO friendships, his hatred of all things wallstreet yet his continual close relationship to it. This man contains a multitude!

Lowenstein gets to the core of these contradictions in a revealing narrative of Buffet's formative years. We're let in on his distant yet highly principled congressman-father, his unfulfilled raging-mother, his intense desire to be rich from an early age, his love of numbers, his conservatism and loss-aversion, his unyielding resistance to change, his shy but outspoken style of showmanship (he honed this by taking classes), and probably most important in explaining his success, his disciplined adherence to the Graham-and-Dodd value principles (although applied in his own unique way).

He comes across as incredibly intelligent and widely read on current affairs but able to distill things down to a deceptively simple narrative. His consistent valuation framework allows him to cut through the cacophony of Wall street chatter that leads to short term thinking, herd mentality, pie-in-the sky valuations, and eventually undersized returns. As a result he blows away the market for five decades, virtually every single year. There has never been anyone with close to his record, nor will there be for many, many generations to come.

One thing I realized is that Buffet has spent a LOT of time reading stacks of annual reports all alone in his study. This is where he put his 10,000 hours and where he derived the insight behind his decisions. He has a wide network and makes a lot of calls but these are usually performed after he has an idea. He also keeps a quiet clutter-free office (none of his staff even know what he's cooking up next) and cuccoons himself in with piles of raw information - no computers, bloomberg screens or endless meetings and calls typical for a money manager. It reminds one of the Flaubert advice, “be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work.” His relationship with west-coast-based Charlie Munger seems to have provided the perfect sounding board for his ideas. Just enough of a wise outside council to give him the confidence to act aggressively without over-analyzing or diluting his ideas. When things are cheap, Buffet acts quickly and aggressively (no investment committees here). He uses his numerical margin of safety in place of extensive discipline. A scan of the numbers, a quick call to Charlie, and Bam! $10 billion ready to go to action. Buffet's mantra.

"Be greedy when others are fearful and fearful when others are greedy."

Simple as that, really!

In summary, I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in investing. This is up there with the Intelligent Investor, the book that changed Buffet's own life when he read it in high school......more

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, finding it entertaining and informative, which when you think about it, is unusual when talking about finance and boring stuff of that nature. In reality, it’s a character study of the man himself—and he’s interesting. Buffett’s genius is largely genius of character—of patience, discipline, rationality and resourcefulness. He appears to be one of the few capitalists who got super rich without leaving a trail of victims and suicides (as one would find in a bleedingI thoroughly enjoyed this book, finding it entertaining and informative, which when you think about it, is unusual when talking about finance and boring stuff of that nature. In reality, it’s a character study of the man himself—and he’s interesting. Buffett’s genius is largely genius of character—of patience, discipline, rationality and resourcefulness. He appears to be one of the few capitalists who got super rich without leaving a trail of victims and suicides (as one would find in a bleeding Hemingway novel). Hey, he said 'Writing’s easy—all you do is sit at your typewriter and bleed!' Back to Buffett…

Unlike the modern portfolio manager, whose mind-set is that of a trader, Buffett risked his capital on the long-term growth of a few select businesses. He once wrote that he would no more take an investment banker’s opinion on whether to do a deal than he would ask a barber whether he needed a haircut.

But just imagine investing $10,000 with Buffet in 1956 and it being worth $550 million today! What I learned from this book was that Buffett looked for two things in particular: companies that were well run by hardworking, dedicated people and then above all else, after careful study of financial documents—intrinsic value!

One example of this is the famous Mrs. B. She’d arrived penniless from Russia as a very young woman. She settled in Omaha and started selling bits and pieces and then, furniture. Due to hard work, her American dream materialized. Buffett had had his eye on Mrs. B’s business for years. She’d grown it into a mammoth undertaking, so big, she needed a golf cart to tour her store. In the end, Buffett leaves his office and strolls in to see the ninety-one-year-old lady. The conversation goes something like this:‘Hey, d’you wanna sell this business?’‘Sure.’‘How much d’you want?’‘Sixty million!’‘Done. I’ll have it drawn up by tomorrow,’ Buffett said.

There are many nice little quotes throughout—or what we might call ‘Buffettisms’. Buffett spoke of about an oil prospector, and I can almost hear him saying it: He arrived at heaven’s gate only to hear the distressing news that the “compound” reserved for oilmen was full. Given permission by Saint Peter to say a few words, the prospector shouted, “Oil discovered in hell!”—whereupon every oilman in heaven departed for the nether reaches. Impressed, Saint Peter told him there was now plenty of room. The prospector paused. “No,” he said, “I think I’ll go along with the rest of the boys. There might be some truth to the rumor.

But ‘Character—not money—was the basis of credit’ was one of Buffett’s strongest beliefs, according the author Roger Lowenstein. This fact, along with his success, certainly seemed to win him a lot of admirers.

He became very close to Katharine Graham of the Washington Post. She seemed to depend on him in the end. Who could blame her! Graham estimated that she talked to Buffett ‘maybe every other day or so, several times a week.’ When Graham had to give a speech, which she found frightening, she would call Omaha, and Buffett would deliver a perfectly metered response, off-the-cuff. She actually began taping their conversations. He speaks in finished paragraphs. I’d say, ‘What?—Could you say that again?’ He can’t do it. It comes so fast he can’t retrace it. It takes your breath away…. After Buffett had been on the board awhile, he began to push her to be more self-reliant. One time, she asked him to come to Washington to negotiate a swap of the Post’s television station in Washington, plus some cash, for a station in Detroit. ‘No,’ Buffett told her. “You do it.” “Okay, tell me how much to give them,” Graham said. “No—you figure it out.”

Like many a multi-millionaire, one understands his mindset and how he got to be one! Another time, when they landed at La Guardia, Graham was in a hurry to make a telephone call and asked if he had a dime. Buffett fished a quarter out of his pocket. Not wanting to waste fifteen cents, he started outside to change it, like any other multimillionaire from Nebraska. Graham hollered, “Warren, give me the quarter!”

His marriage to Susan, was unconventional and his devotion to her, touching. She decides to become a nightclub singer and he encourages her. Then she goes off to live by herself. But still they remain close somehow, often attending functions together. Even then, she would nestle next to him and take his hand in public, as though they were teenagers, knowing that she was his muse.

His devotion to Susan is touching. When Susie was onstage, Buffett would watch with a beatific expression, as if overcome by rapture. He told a friend, “When Susie sings, it is so beautiful I can’t breathe.’

The numbers Buffett deals in are staggering. He becomes interested in Coca-Cola. Keough the CEO calls Buffett:“You don’t happen to be buying any shares of Coca-Cola?” “It so happens that I am,” Buffett replied. By the next spring, Berkshire had acquired $1.02 billion worth, or 7 percent of the Coca-Cola Co., at an average price of $10.96 a share….In a mere three years, Buffett’s stake in Coca-Cola would soar to an astounding $3.75 billion—roughly the value of all of Berkshire when it had begun investing in Coca-Cola.

The episode with Salomon was amazing and worthy of a movie. Some misdeeds by Salomon employees had come to light with a bloodbath ensuing. Buffett, with no real experience of handling a large Wall Street firm, took control and did well. His common sense and honest dealing stood him in good stead.

Instinctively, he shrank from confronting his adversaries, but he was superb at winning them over without a fight. …He did not so much convince; he disarmed, he co-opted. …He had to assume, very publicly, as only Buffett could, a personal responsibility for the scandal—to show that the stain was not only purged but deeply and sincerely regretted. The congressmen ascended to spasms of telegenic outrage.

Buffett’s was tough on those who failed the public and the firm. …As far as I am concerned, those responsible deserve absolutely nothing from Salomon Brothers, not a dime in severance pay, not a dime in remuneration of any kind, and not a dime to pay for their defense, either … nothing but a swift kick in the butt out of Salomon Brothers and onto the street.… ‘I would like to start by apologizing for the acts that have brought us here. The Nation has a right to expect its rules and laws will be obeyed. At Salomon, certain of these were broken.’

Buffett thought that executes were overpaying themselves in bad times. Buffett decides to act boldly. On October 29 he took out a remarkable two-page ad in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and the Financial Times, reproducing Salomon’s third-quarter report. The heart of it was a letter from Buffett denouncing the company’s pay scale. He emphasized that he had no problem with extraordinary pay for extraordinary performance. But Salomon’s “share-the-wealth” system was subsidizing all—even the mediocre—at the shareholders’ expense. Having said this, Buffett dropped a bomb. He was lopping off $110 million from the pool set aside for bonuses for 1991. As a result, although profits that year (earned before the scandal) were double those of 1990, bonuses would be slightly less than in 1990. Those who didn’t like it could walk…No one on the staff saw him waver, even in the slightest. This was Buffett’s essential virtue—the courage to stick to his course.

I wish I’d been born with a fraction of the wisdom of Warren Buffett. As an atheist he bears out the fact that you don’t need to be a Christian to be honest and possess integrity. He has all that built in. His wealth has been derived by careful study of the facts and having a computer-like brain helps. (He doesn’t own a computer or an adding machine). He is also a man of downhome ordinariness who enjoys Cokes or Pepsis and hamburgers for dinner.

I find his politics interesting. When I grew up, people with money, were said to be right wingers and conservatives—‘filthy capitalists!’ Lately, I’ve wondered how come most billionaires seem to be left wingers, ‘progressives’ and communists. This book, to some degree, helped clear up that mystery....more

In some ways this guy is the ultimate Mr Burns-like single-minded capitalist. But to be fair to him: he's consistently fought for his income bracket to have to pay much higher taxes, repeatedly attacked Bush's tax cuts for the rich, and finally commited to giving away almost all of his money to the Gates foundation. In some ways I think he is quintessentially American, in the same sense that Citizen Kane is the quintessential American movie.

I've been following the markets for the better part of 25 years, and over the years I've come across many books, articles, and profiles of Warren Buffett; seen him interviewed countless times on CNBC, even watched a documentary about him on Danish television last week, so I approached Buffett with reasonably low expectations - how much more was there to learn? Quite a bit apparently. This book is as good as the book on his partner Charlie Munger (previously reviewed) was bad. Lowenstein does a gI've been following the markets for the better part of 25 years, and over the years I've come across many books, articles, and profiles of Warren Buffett; seen him interviewed countless times on CNBC, even watched a documentary about him on Danish television last week, so I approached Buffett with reasonably low expectations - how much more was there to learn? Quite a bit apparently. This book is as good as the book on his partner Charlie Munger (previously reviewed) was bad. Lowenstein does a great job getting to the root of Buffett's unique approach to investing - his almost monomaniacal obsession with studying companies - and the detrimental impact this pursuit has had on his family. It's an inspirational story though of a great mind and a truly independent thinker - someone almost as comfortable taking on taboo social issues as he is uncovering undervalued companies. And with the book written in the mid-nineties it focuses on Buffett's formative experiences (the Berkshire-Hathaway acquisition, his relationship with Katherine Graham of the Washington Post, and saving Salomon Brothers) many of which I was less familiar with. The book is a bit dated, despite an epilogue added in 2008, as Buffett is difficult to keep up with - now into his eighties, the man who hates change, is still making headlines. Overall I'm pleased to report that Buffett the book is as interesting as Buffett the person....more

I read the Snowball by A. Schroeder but wanted to see how this earlier Bio compared. Many of the details of his story are similar and dealt with in the same chronological order. Even though the Snowball gives a lot more personal almost intimate details about WB's life, there are some good different insights here too.

The value principles resurface as expected. In random order some of my takeaways are as follows. Have the purchase price so attractive that even a mediocre sale would do. Put all yoI read the Snowball by A. Schroeder but wanted to see how this earlier Bio compared. Many of the details of his story are similar and dealt with in the same chronological order. Even though the Snowball gives a lot more personal almost intimate details about WB's life, there are some good different insights here too.

The value principles resurface as expected. In random order some of my takeaways are as follows. Have the purchase price so attractive that even a mediocre sale would do. Put all your eggs in a basket and watch that basket. Have the proper temperment set. Keep a margin of safety. Be detached from the daily market moves. Look at statistics not so much subjective analysis. Save your credit for that is better than money. Stay rational, a horse than can count to 10 is a great horse but not a mathematician. Choose the right heroes.

But there was also a few other insights that I haven't seen detailed anywhere else so far. Munger desperatly wanted yo get rich not to buy ferraries but for the independance. I had never heard about the mba student that tried to learn from him, Daniel Grossman, the tenis star in omaha. He was just overwhelmed. The solomon case is much more detailed than in Alice Schroeders' book and I didn't t realise he respected and admired Gutfreund. I don't remember that it was that obvious in the Snowball. It's funny also to learn that Samuelson the nobel laureate on market efficiency theory, eventually bought a big stake in Berkshire just in case he was wrong lol. Finally I had no clue that B. Greenwald said he is not really a Graham and Dodder, but that he is more into speculating not investing....more

Once or twice a year I come to read a biography of a great man and I just fall for them. This was definitely one of these occasions, I don't think it's possible to dislike this man. His thorough biography is full of things I like in one. Early attempts at what they eventually succeed in, business deals described in detail, character integrity, etc. I rarely go as far as naming someone my idol, but this past ten days Warren Buffet has become one.

A brilliant book chronicling the life of greatest investor, and one of my few personal idols, the world has seen!!Contains several pearls of gem about his personality, temperament and his genius that led to a follower-ship bordering on idolatry. From several stories covering his impeccable value-investing style and principles, to instances showing his less-than-perfect personal relationships, this book is a must-read for people wanting to know more about the Oracle of Omaha.

Book Review: BuffettThe Making of An American CapitalistRoger LowensteinThis book was written back in 1995, so it is severely dated. It does, however, give us an idea of what Buffett was like at that time. He may have changed since then.

I used to be able to say I liked almost everything about Buffett. I would use the word “almost” because, since I don’t know him personally, there could have been something I did not like about him. In reading this book, I found out what that was.

I am a FundamentaBook Review: BuffettThe Making of An American CapitalistRoger LowensteinThis book was written back in 1995, so it is severely dated. It does, however, give us an idea of what Buffett was like at that time. He may have changed since then.

I used to be able to say I liked almost everything about Buffett. I would use the word “almost” because, since I don’t know him personally, there could have been something I did not like about him. In reading this book, I found out what that was.

I am a Fundamental Christian. By that term, I mean I believe that the Bible is true in every word. I do agree that there are errors in my understanding of the Word. But, God does not make mistakes and where there are translation errors God had a reason for that. I believe that life begins at the split second of conception and that no one, other than God, has the right to end that life, no matter what the reason.

Buffet, as far as this book states, does not believe in God. He is very afraid of dying. Now, I don’t want to die, but I know when I die I will be in heaven. Since Buffett does not have that to look forward to, he has reason to believe that when you die you cease to be.

Buffett is also said to be a large supporter of Planned Parenthood. The book states that Buffett sees donating to Planned Parenthood as an investment in the well-being of the world. The book states that Buffett sees this as a way to prevent over population of the world. If Planned Parenthood’s only ways of preventing over population was to provide sex education as well as to teach abstinence and, barring that, barrier methods to birth control, I would agree with him. However, I believe that God has a reason for every conception. Every life has meaning and every child should have a chance to make their mark on the world.

All of that being said the book is great. Buffett the man has a great sense of business and a great success record. Companies call on him to bail them out when they are in a jam. Buffett studies business models constantly and has an amazing head for business figures.

Buffett sort of compares with Commodore Vanderbilt in that he took an approach to money that was hands-off. When Buffett’s children need to borrow money, he tells them to borrow it from a bank or he has them sign a promissory note and they pay prevailing interest rates, according to the book.

All-in-all, I think this is a good book, well worth reading and a great addition to my library.

Book Review PolicyMy policy on book reviews is to give you my honest opinion of the book. From time to time publishers will give me a copy of their book for free for the purpose of me reading the book and writing a review. The publishers understand when they give me the book that I am under no obligation to write a positive review.

If you will look at all my reviews, you will see that there have been occasions when I have written a negative review after having been given a book.

I often provide links to books on Amazon.com where you can purchase books and help support the continued operation of this blog. However, I strongly encourage you to check out your local library. Many libraries now offer electronic borrowing for free.

I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 I purchased this book through Friends of the Library. Contact your local library and find out what excellent deals they offer....more

Reading this biography clarifies some of the traits that have contributed to Warren Buffett's astounding business success: his laser-like focus, his unusual capacity to perform math in his head, and his appreciation for true value as opposed to what I'll call "bling appeal." Insightful and meticulously researched, Lowenstein sheds light on the personality and thought process of one of the world's richest men, who started off in his in-laws' basement with little more than $800 and parlayed it intReading this biography clarifies some of the traits that have contributed to Warren Buffett's astounding business success: his laser-like focus, his unusual capacity to perform math in his head, and his appreciation for true value as opposed to what I'll call "bling appeal." Insightful and meticulously researched, Lowenstein sheds light on the personality and thought process of one of the world's richest men, who started off in his in-laws' basement with little more than $800 and parlayed it into many billions.

There were many unexpected aspects to Buffett's story. Unlike many wealthy people, he is not obsessed with collecting glamorous possessions. This exchange is typical:

"He did ask Susie to upgrade his VW, explaining that it looked bad when he picked up visitors at the airport. But he didn't have the slightest interest in it.

'What kind of car?' Susie asked.

'Any car. I don't care what kind.' (She got him a wide-finned Cadillac.)" True, this was early in his career, but it is revealing of his attitude.

I also did not expect a man like this to have a healthy marriage, but Lowenstein confirms, he does, although he seems slightly distant from his children.I particularly enjoyed the section on his first major acquisition where Buffett and the indomitable, 4 foot 10 inch Mrs. B, an immigrant who created the largest furniture business in Omaha from nothing, hammered out a sixty million dollar deal. Upon closing Mrs. B stated, "Mr. Buffett, we're going to put our competitors through a meat grinder." This was Buffett's ideal--a partner who was totally focused, competitive, and very shrewd. Lowenstein skillfully escorts the reader through many fascinating incidents, showing the human side of his subject, while helping one grasp his unique financial genius.

Warren Buffett might be the most enigmatic man of our time. While everyone knows that his past half century of investing has made him into the richest man in the world, nobody seems to know much about him beyond this. The few anecdotes we sometimes hear- he still lives in the same modest house in Omaha, he doesn't drink anything stronger than coca-cola, he drives himself around in a very basic Lincoln- only pique our curiosity more.

Roger Lowenstein is well known for writing extremely engaging anWarren Buffett might be the most enigmatic man of our time. While everyone knows that his past half century of investing has made him into the richest man in the world, nobody seems to know much about him beyond this. The few anecdotes we sometimes hear- he still lives in the same modest house in Omaha, he doesn't drink anything stronger than coca-cola, he drives himself around in a very basic Lincoln- only pique our curiosity more.

Roger Lowenstein is well known for writing extremely engaging and thoroughly understandable books about business subjects (such as When Genius Failed). This book is no different. He really does a great job of shedding some light on one of the most interesting men in american history- I was fascinated from cover to cover.

The book was published in 1995, and with Warren still going strong today, there is obviously a 14 year gap that needs to be filled in. Mr. Lowenstein- how about a sequel???

Add one star to my rating if you generally enjoy business books and subtract one if you don't....more

The first major biography of Warren Buffett. Written without active support by Buffett (he also didn't discourage anyone from working with Lowenstein). I felt Lowenstein's writing in When Genius Failed, the account of the failure of Long Term Capital Management, was stronger. In contrast to Snowball by Alice Schroeder, this book focused more on Buffett as the investor and major owner of Berkshire Hathaway. Charlie Munger's role and contributions are largely sidI wish I could give this 3.5 stars.

The first major biography of Warren Buffett. Written without active support by Buffett (he also didn't discourage anyone from working with Lowenstein). I felt Lowenstein's writing in When Genius Failed, the account of the failure of Long Term Capital Management, was stronger. In contrast to Snowball by Alice Schroeder, this book focused more on Buffett as the investor and major owner of Berkshire Hathaway. Charlie Munger's role and contributions are largely sidelined in this story. Too bad, since Munger had a significant role in the evolution of Buffett's thinking from pure Graham to a blend of Graham/Fisher/Munger/Buffett. Nonetheless, it does a good job of going into detail in places where Snowball doesn't (like the Salomon Brothers episode). Aspects of his relationship with Susie Buffett were also left out (especially after she left for California). Definitely has more of a tilt of Buffett as an "American capitalist" than Buffett as a person. ...more

I previously knew many small details about Warren Buffett and had a vague sense of his personality and investment strategies. From the first chapter, this book was captivating as it details key events throughout Buffett's entire life. From his first "businesses" delivering newspapers and arcade games, starting a family and trying to instill his values in his children and in more modern day times, having to take a more direct role in companies he invested in. Buffett's determination from a very yI previously knew many small details about Warren Buffett and had a vague sense of his personality and investment strategies. From the first chapter, this book was captivating as it details key events throughout Buffett's entire life. From his first "businesses" delivering newspapers and arcade games, starting a family and trying to instill his values in his children and in more modern day times, having to take a more direct role in companies he invested in. Buffett's determination from a very young age to some day (soon) be very rich as well as his innate ability to comprehend and retain numbers meant that he was able to do just that. I hear this is not the best book to learn about his life thus far, but it was a very enjoyable one. ...more

Not a terribly exciting book. Warren Buffett's pecularities (drinks coke, lives in Omaha, invests "permanantly") makes him a curious phenom but not an exciting subject matter. And by the time you get to 40th sentence in the likes of "in 10 year period, XYZ stock grow by astonishing 2000%) you are definitely not astonished. And no, there are no stock tips in here that you don't know already.

The common thing between Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Richard Branson and Warren Buffett is their entrepreneurial mindset since their childhood. But Buffett is the only one, to my knowledge, who flourished at school and business and graduated from college with straight A's, unlike the others mentioned above. The childhood of Buffett was tough and permeated many difficulties as he was born in the era that was hit by the great depression. However, this was the reason that made money always in theThe common thing between Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Richard Branson and Warren Buffett is their entrepreneurial mindset since their childhood. But Buffett is the only one, to my knowledge, who flourished at school and business and graduated from college with straight A's, unlike the others mentioned above. The childhood of Buffett was tough and permeated many difficulties as he was born in the era that was hit by the great depression. However, this was the reason that made money always in the mind of Buffett. This propelled him to work hard at early age. His entrepreneurial genius showed when he started gaining profits by buying and selling stocks at the age of 11, a year later after his father took him to visit New York stock exchange. He also worked for several newspaper companies delivering and collecting subscrption fees, and by the age of 14, he bought 40 acres of land for $1,200.

At Columbia Business school, Buffett learnt a lot from his economist professor and later his mentor Benjamin Graham. The most valuable lesson Buffett learnt from Graham was how to successfully make investment with companies that are less likely to fail him. This was done by following Graham's investment philosophy which is investment must be made after analyzing the intrinsic value of a company and comparing it with the market value. This approach of analyzing stocks has helped Buffett to often have successful investment as such analysis requires diligent research that involves adding up all of a company's assets, including its revenue streams and future prospects. So, how is it to know whether to buy stock by this analysis; if the analysis shows that the intrinsic value of a company is greater than the market value, then it is a safe bet to buy.

Buffett, as he is having an entrepreneurial mindset since a young age, started his own business at the age of 26. Withinone year he managed to raise $500,000 and formed Buffett Associates, Ltd. The raised money was invested in buying stocks of undervalued companies' stocks. The theories of Buffett's professor, Graham, helped him to successfully invest the raised money and gain him profits. Within three years, Buffett doubled the money he raised for his company. Then Buffett took a brave step by buying a full control shares in Dempster Mill Manufacturing which was suffering at the time Buffett purchased the shares. The reason why Buffett did buy the shares is because I found by applying the intrinsic value analysis that the company had a solid intrinsic value; three years later, Buffett sold the company with $2.5 million in profit.

Buffett's net worth increased dramatically during the 1980s as a result of the cut in interest which made stocks so attractive. By 1979, the Berkshire, Buffett's company, was selling a share for $270. However, when interest rate was reduced, the price jumped to $1310 per share making Buffett hit the Forbes magazine of being one of the richest businessmen with net worth of $620 million.

Despite Buffett considered one of the wealthiest people on the earth, he is humble and one of the greatest philanthropist. After his wife death, he made decision of donate most of it to charity. So far, one sixth of his fortune has been divided among different Buffett family foundations, and the rest will be allocated over time to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

All in all, Buffett had a very humble and tough childhood, and his hard work has led him to be successful, along with his professor and mentor Graham who tuaght Buffett valuable lessons on how to be smart when investing....more

Warren Buffett is an accomplished enough guy that a full account of his career probably deserves several volumes of rather larger size, but this is a good introduction to his life, career, and general investment philosophy. While it suffers from having been published in 1995, meaning that it includes nothing on the last third of his career (though the 2008 edition contains an updated Afterword), it's useful enough to be worth picking up for anyone who's interested in his investment history, a brWarren Buffett is an accomplished enough guy that a full account of his career probably deserves several volumes of rather larger size, but this is a good introduction to his life, career, and general investment philosophy. While it suffers from having been published in 1995, meaning that it includes nothing on the last third of his career (though the 2008 edition contains an updated Afterword), it's useful enough to be worth picking up for anyone who's interested in his investment history, a broad overview of his strategies, or simply curious about his personal life.

What should an investor, or anyone interested in finance, make of Buffett's career? He didn't invent value investing, which was pioneered by his mentor Ben Graham, but he's been its most famous and successful practitioner so consistently over the decades that it seems like there must be some trick beyond simply looking at P/E ratios and book values. It seems implausible that Buffett has simply been lucky - he's just way too rich - and yet it's hard to explain his run of success using common views of how finance works. The history of finance is replete with the corpses of investors who tried to beat the market too consistently and by too much (keep an eye out for Salomon Brothers executive John Meriwether, whose spectacularly doomed hedge fund Long-Term Capital Management would be the subject of Lowenstein's next book, When Genius Failed), and yet despite a recent spate of poor performance, Buffett has been beating the market regularly for 63 years, longer than a majority of investors have been alive. Has he been exploiting some kind of glitch in the Efficient Markets Hypothesis? Does his particular variant of buy-and-hold have a hidden advantage over index funds? Is value investing exempt from law of large numbers/diminishing returns issues? Will a strict avoidance of conflict and hostility be a superior strategy in an environment of leveraged buyouts and junk bonds? Lowenstein can't completely settle these questions (if it were that easy to replicate Buffett's success, surely there would be more than one Buffett by now), but his accounts of how Buffett viewed his strategic issues offers a lot of insight into what motivated each particular investment decision.

And there are plenty of decisions. Going into the book, I knew that Berkshire Hathaway was his investment vehicle, but I had no idea of its history as a gradually declining textile conglomerate before Buffett transformed it beyond all recognition. As he was gradually nudging the company away from its roots in the New England cotton mills that had been its livelihood, I was reminded of Danny DeVito's speech in Other People's Money about not letting sentimentality about old business models holding back future growth, though Buffett's later adventures like getting into a circulation war as owner of the Buffalo News showed his emotional side. Buffett himself considers his purchase of Berkshire Hathaway a mistake, given that his initial large share purchase was motivated in large part by spite after a counterparty at the firm tried to chisel him out of 1/8 of a point on the share price; if he had simply invested directly in the insurance businesses rather than buy them through Berkshire, he would have made about twice as much money. Lowenstein quotes from "The Joys of Compounding", where Buffett makes the same point in a different way:

"I have it from unreliable sources that the cost of the voyage Isabella originally underwrote for Columbus was approximately $30,000. This has been considered at least a moderately successful utilization of venture capital. Without attempting to evaluate the psychic income derived from finding a new hemisphere, it must be pointed out that even had squatter's rights prevailed, the whole deal was not exactly another IBM. Figured very roughly, the $30,000 invested at 4% compounded annually would have amounted to something like $2,000,000,000,000 (that’s $2 trillion for those of you who are not government statisticians) by 1962."

In other words, always pay attention to the opportunity cost of money, and realize that even seemingly very successful purchases might have foreclosed even more profitable, if more subtle, options. Of course, Buffett's actual record doesn't look so bad - GEICO, Coca-Cola, American Express, Wells Fargo, Salomon Brothers, etc. - yet it seems like there's a consistent theme, that being bearish when everyone else is bullish, and vice versa, is a consistently safe strategy, particularly when investing in large brands with stable fundamentals. For lack of a better way to put it, other investors who tried to be as cautious as Buffett were never as bold when the situation called for it, and investors who tried to match him in boldness usually lacked sufficient caution at key moments.

Whether that's a philosophy that can be sufficiently mathematically rigorized is beyond me, and Lowenstein doesn't attempt to quantify Buffett's strategies. That's fine for a short volume, because it leaves room for the biographical information that most readers will want. The book covers his childhood in Omaha, his college years, his study under value investor Ben Graham, his partnership with like-minded investor Charlie Munger, his marriage and mistress, and his often-strained relationships with his children. Buffett has been famously miserly and uninclined towards charity, which the book explores. Whether you agree with Milton Friedman's infamous paper that "The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Its Profits" or not, the contrast between Buffett's repeated statements that he plans to give all his money away and his actual record of relatively minor philanthropic activity is striking, especially also given his refusal to establish a Rockefeller-type dynasty and his advocacy for higher taxation of the rich. Yet even if there's a philosophical contradiction in there somewhere, Buffett's integrity is unquestionable, particularly when he's sharing the stage with characters like Ivan Boesky or Michael Milken.

Overall Lowenstein does a great job of condensing Buffett's life, ideas, and career into a single manageable book, and though I often wished he would expand more on topics, doing so would have made the book less accessible. He's a more sensible and less sensationalist writer than someone like Michael Lewis (whose misrepresentations of Buffett's record come in for some criticism), and while this book probably won't be the last stop for anyone curious about one of the greatest investors in history, it's an excellent first one....more

As an employee just going over five years at a company in the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, I was interested to see this come across my Audible feed and picked it up. I've noticed several interesting things in my tenure with my employer: that employee retention is ridiculously long, even the information technology staff has MOSTLY been there five, ten, or more years. That Berkshire Hathaway seems to keep its hands completely off the wheels of our organization. And that we don't get employee discAs an employee just going over five years at a company in the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, I was interested to see this come across my Audible feed and picked it up. I've noticed several interesting things in my tenure with my employer: that employee retention is ridiculously long, even the information technology staff has MOSTLY been there five, ten, or more years. That Berkshire Hathaway seems to keep its hands completely off the wheels of our organization. And that we don't get employee discounts at Sees Candy and DQ and Geico, nor do they let us drive the BNSF railroad engines. Tongue-in-cheek, mostly, but it seems that Mr. Buffett and Mr. Munger really just buy companies and leave hands off.

I listened to the audiobook and it really helped understand how Buffett came into his thinking and business ethic, as well as chronicled the growth from a decaying end-of-life textile mill to one of the largest and most-admired companies in the world. It was interesting to see how time and again, Buffett played against the prevailing wisdom and wisely chose his plays despite what The Street was saying.

I was a bit disappointed that the book was published in 2008 and so is now a decade out of date. In that ten years the stock price has gone from 140,000 per share to $263,000. Acquisitions during that time include BNSF, Oriental Trading, Duracell, and other concerns as well as continued investments in other businesses. It may be "Warren did more of the same" but it would be interesting to have an update....more

Anne Holmes recommended this book & gave me her copy. I’m glad she did! This was an enjoyable and insightful read. Lowenstein provides a nice mix of personal and business details of Buffett’s life and career.

I’m a professional Financial Advisor and I enjoyed seeing how Buffett’s investment approach developed and transformed over time - some principals staying the same and some aspects evolving. The personal interactions with other business people and the way he approaches analysis of securiAnne Holmes recommended this book & gave me her copy. I’m glad she did! This was an enjoyable and insightful read. Lowenstein provides a nice mix of personal and business details of Buffett’s life and career.

I’m a professional Financial Advisor and I enjoyed seeing how Buffett’s investment approach developed and transformed over time - some principals staying the same and some aspects evolving. The personal interactions with other business people and the way he approaches analysis of securities was interesting and applies to much of what I do all day long for my clients. It was fascinating to see the concepts I’ve studied and used be deployed in his fashion.

This book was my first insight into his family life and friendships. His views on philanthropy and generational inheritance make a lot of sense to me. The author also provided many comments from family, friends and business associates which gives us more and varied viewpoints.

Why not give it 5 Stars? Frankly, it was a little too long. Some editing would’ve been good, especially in the more esoteric sections about credit and LBOs. That part was dry.

I’ve enjoyed sharing things that I learned in this book. Most Americans are familiar with Buffet, drink Coke and/or Pepsi, have seen the Geico ads, etc. So it’s fun conversation even for others who haven’t read it....more

With the help of his mentor, Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffett learned the important difference between how much a company is really worth and how much it’s selling for. An aptitude for discerning this difference, combined with a steadfast refusal to succumb to trends and a keen understanding of numbers, is what allowed Buffett to accrue a fortune exceeding $66 billion.

Suggested further reading:

The Snowball by Alice Schroeder

The SnoI read this book thanks to Blinkist.

The key message in this book:

With the help of his mentor, Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffett learned the important difference between how much a company is really worth and how much it’s selling for. An aptitude for discerning this difference, combined with a steadfast refusal to succumb to trends and a keen understanding of numbers, is what allowed Buffett to accrue a fortune exceeding $66 billion.

Suggested further reading:

The Snowball by Alice Schroeder

The Snowball (2008) offers a revealing look at the life and times of one of modern America’s most fascinating men: Warren Buffett. Find out how this shy and awkward man earned his first million dollars and how following a few fundamental rules enabled him to become the world’s wealthiest man....more

Roger Lowenstein has reported for the Wall Street Journal for more than a decade and is a frequent contributor to The New York Times and The New Republic. He is the author of Buffet: the Making of an American Capitalist

“Buffett found it 'extraordinary' that academics studied such things. They studied what was measurable, rather than what was meaningful. 'As a friend [Charlie Munger] said, to a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail.”
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“The modern spirit is a hesitant one. Spontaneity has given way to cautious legalisms, and the age of heroes has been superseded by a cult of specialization. We have no more giants; only obedient ants.”
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